Montgomery Botanical Center, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, and the National Herbarium of Trinidad and Tobago participated in a joint fieldwork project during October 2010, in Trinidad. Melissa Abdo (project leader) and Juan Rivera of FTBG, and Yasmin Baksh-Comeau of the University of the West Indies worked with Dr. Larry Noblick, MBC Palm Biologist.

Larry reports that the trip resulted in a successful extension of fieldwork in 2007. Further information, specimens, and living collections of  palms were developed and shared.

Astrocaryum aculeatum, Attalea maripa, and Bactris campestris are three very interesting species collected. In the photo here, Larry stands on Morne Bleu with Prestoea pubigera, a species that occurs only in Trinidad and on the Paria Peninsula in Venezuela. Basic biogeographic work by herbaria, coupled with living garden collections, create a unique and important set of resources for research and conservation.

A series of articles by Melissa on the FTBG website (1, 2, 3) detail the fieldwork. In addition, the team worked on herbarium projects centered around the University of the West Indies in St. Augustine. Larry states, “Melissa and Juan are good people to collect with, they both have very pleasant personalities and are great in the field. And it was great to work with Yasmin and Winston Johnson, who are both true experts on the Trinidadian Flora.”